Citizens’ group to begin initiative process to move electrical service to Thurston PUD

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An interesting development is now underway with the formation of a citizen’s group to advocate for Public Power – the distribution and generation of electricity by our county’s own public utility, Thurston PUD No. 1. Currently a water utility, Thurston PUD has grown a great deal over the last seven years. We have a staff of 11 to 12 people and operate water systems in Thurston and four neighboring counties.

Going electric requires a county-wide vote in the general election. The citizen’s group, Thurston Public Power Initiative, was established by Thurston County residents to accomplish this goal by petitioning our county’s registered voters to place the issue on this November’s ballot and to campaign for its passage. Their first task is to submit the petition language to our county auditor for approval and collect nearly 12,000 valid Thurston County signatures to place the issue on the ballot this fall. Their deadline to accomplish this is early July.

In 2008, a similar citizen’s group in Jefferson County (Port Townsend area) succeeded in passing a county-wide vote and the Jefferson PUD will soon be entering a three year transition to take control of its electrical service at the end of March 2013. Similar ballot measures that same year failed in Island and Skagit Counties.

This proposal is not new to Thurston County. It first came about with the formation of our own public utility district (PUD) in 1938. The long period of court battles that ensued failed to bring the PUD into the electrical business. Several more attempts were made up to the early 1960’s when one of two supportive commissioners died suddenly, leaving the other hopelessly deadlocked with the third commissioner. Future elected commissioners later overturned the entire effort.

During our PUD’s first 23 years the issue went before the Federal Court and involved several other county PUDs’ attempt to take over Puget Power as well as another private utility. The last eruption 50 years ago even sparked a highly polarized dramatic debate in the state Capitol and led to the removal of the pro-public power and long time Speaker of the House, John L. O’Brien by defections from within his own Democratic Party.

Why the current interest in publicly controlled power?

Our current Investor Owned Utility (IOU) Puget Sound Energy is no longer a publicly traded company with US shareholders. It “went private” three years ago and is now entirely foreign-owned and -operated (though nominally registered in the state of Delaware as a US company). Its new owners are an Australian Investment Bank and Canadian Pension Funds. Their mutual interest in owning our state’s largest private utility comes as no surprise, since Puget Sound Energy is one of the largest consumers of the Canadian Natural Gas Fields located in Western Canada. The resulting match-up along with the existing pipelines could be characterized best as a vertically integrated conglomerate (single ownership of the gas fields, pipelines and the consuming utility). That is where we are today.

I ran for office over three years ago on a platform that including having our PUD commission a feasibility study on whether we should enter the electrical business and how best to pursue this option. I was elected with over 60% of the vote. It is now time to act on this issue and give our citizens a clear appraisal of its prospects.

At our January 10 meeting, I will ask our PUD to commission an independent feasibility study to determine whether we should enter into the electrical business and via what process taking into account our current economic climate. One of the subjects the study will consider is the finite resources of federally-controlled hydropower and our ability to access it before its capacity is all spoken for.

In the future, electric utilities will be more and more involved in our citizens’ transportation choices. Most car manufacturers are fully aware of and working toward this. As demand and cost of generation rises, so will electric rates. Public power provides the opportunity for greater citizen oversight and local control of this resource that is so vital to the overall economic health of our community.

Future electrical rates by a publicly owned utility could be moderated by:

1) Direct access to Bonneville’s (BPA’s) cheaper Tier One federally sourced hydro-power through a hundred year-old federal policy known as “Preference,”

2) Lower interest rates on debt for municipal bonds which are tax-free for PUD’s,

3) Removal of the over 10% return (profit) paid to private utility shareholders as regulated by the Utilities and Transportation Commission, the regulator of all private utilities in our state.

All users – residential, industrial, commercial, and government – would benefit from the historically lower rates of publicly-supplied electricity. One of the greatest benefits of rate relief would go to the commercial and industrial business owners who provide jobs in our county. They are currently unable to take advantage of the small farm/residential exchange subsidy from BPA, so their rates will be most favorably impacted in a transition to public power. Cheaper rates to all forms of government could also lead to additional savings for all our citizens, helping to retain spending on government employment, which is an important sector of our local economy.

Improved system maintenance and operation of our electric utility could provide better overall service without the prolonged seven to ten day long storm-related power outages that leave our most vulnerable citizens helpless – often in the coldest and wettest months of the year. Expansion of locally-based union linemen would bring jobs to our county, assure greater system reliability and shorter down time, and be better able to maintain the grid. Our insistence on using quality (instead of second-hand) components will also drastically reduce the number of currently all-too-common power outages due to equipment failure or blown transformers.

Finally, there are great changes underway as to how electrical energy will be delivered in our future. A decentralized electrical grid composed of local renewable energy generation as part of people’s homes, clustered development, and community-based initiatives could lead us closer to a sustainable future. I believe strongly in a more sustainable future and I have been involved directly in our County’s Sustainability Initiative as the chair of the water panel. More and more, the issues of how our energy is produced, and how far away it is produced, will determine what rates we will pay and what kind of future we will share. Isn’t it time that we, citizens, as electric consumers, have a voice in those decisions being made on our behalf? The decision is in your hands.

– CHRIS STEARNS

Chris Stearns, a resident of Thurston County since 1976, is a Thurston PUD. Commissioner and was elected to his first term in 2008.

Public Disclaimer by Chris Stearns: The views contained in this article reflect my own personal opinions and are not necessarily those of my fellow PUD Commissioners, nor do they reflect the official position of Thurston PUD No. 1, which is a water utility at this time.


This article reprinted without permission from Works In Progress, January 2012.
 

Critical Areas Ordinance Public Hearing – December 10

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A public hearing has been scheduled by the Thurston County Planning Commission on the draft Critical Areas Ordinance.   The hearing will be held on Saturday, December 10, 2011. 

Date: December 10, 2011
Time: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with doors and sign-in beginning at 9 a.m.
Location: Room 129, Building 2 of the Thurston County Courthouse, 2000 Lakeridge Drive S.W.
Olympia, WA 98502

The hearing is being held open over a longer period, during daylight hours, to allow all citizens to have a safe, convenient environment in which to testify.  Those who wish to appear and testify may do so at any point between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. on December 10th.  The public hearing may be extended at the discretion of the Planning Commission.

The Planning Commission is not scheduled to make a recommendation at the close of the public hearing. 

In addition, the Planning Commission is currently accepting written comments on the Critical Areas Ordinance, and will do so until 5 p.m. on December 23, 2011.  Please e-mail comments to Andrew Deffobis at deffoba@co.thurston.wa.us, or submit written comments by mail to:

Andrew Deffobis, Associate Planner
Thurston County Planning Department
2000 Lakeridge Drive SW
Building 1, 2nd Floor
Olympia, WA 98502

Public hearing drafts of the Critical Areas Ordinance are now available by clicking here. 

For more information on the update to the County’s Critical Areas Ordinance, click here.

Thurston County Planning Department maintains a web mail service, which issues notices of this kind. You are welcome to sign up for this web mail service by clicking here.
 
 

Gourmet, Locally-Produced Fudge to Benefit Local Preschool

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The Steamboat Island Cooperative Preschool is currently selling gourmet fudge from Sweet Escapes by Angel. This delicious and beautifully packaged fudge is made fresh locally on the Steamboat Peninsula.

Perfect for the holidays! Available in three flavors: Milk Chocolate, Milk Chocolate With Nuts, and Peanut Butter.

$9 per block. Taking orders until Dec 7th.

Order your today by calling 866-1819 or email steamboatcooppreschool@gmail.com 

The Steamboat Island Cooperative Preschool also has a new web site. Click here to learn more about their program. SICP has long provided a terrific local educational experience for both children and their parents. In the Griffin area, we’re lucky to have fine educational opportunities such as this for our children.

Thank you for supporting the Steamboat Island Cooperative Preschool!
 
 

World Affairs Council Speaker “Leaving Afghanistan – Easier Said Than Done” on Nov 17

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THE OLYMPIA WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCIL LECTURE
THURSDAY, November 17, Olympia Center, 7:30 PM, Room 101
SPEAKER: Dr. Katya Drozdova, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Seattle Pacific University
TOPIC: “Leaving Afghanistan – Easier Said Than Done”
As the United States and its coalition allies struggle with a coherent departure policy in Afghanistan, there are lessons to be learned from the Soviet Union’s misadventure in that country from 1979-89. Dr. Drozdova is eminently qualified to deal with that subject. Born in the former Soviet Union she has been a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, where she was a principal investigator in a study called “Mining Afghan Lessons from the Soviet Era” (MALSE). She studied and translated former top secret records of the Soviet Politburo, the purpose of which was to explore ways that might benefit western forces from the Soviet experience. The results of her study have been used to inform policy-makers, scholars and military leaders.
Dr. Drozdova’s recent research and publications focus on problems of U.S. national and international security and counter-terrorism strategies. In addition to her work at the Hoover Institution, she is also a research fellow at the Naval Postgraduate School and an affiliate with the Empirical Studies of Conflict Project. She previously held research positions at New York University’s Alexander Hamilton Center.
One of her publications, Solving the Afghanistan Puzzle, follows the paper trail of Soviet involvement in Afghanistan – and suggests a great deal about our own involvement there today. Other articles include Dark Memories, a brief history of Soviet torturers and assassins; Intelligence Design, describing how terrorists are getting very good at covering their tracks and how their pursuers must become even better at uncovering them; and Security and Liberty, how to protect the nation against terrorism without sacrificing our liberty.
Dr. Drozdova is currently assistant professor of Political Science at Seattle Pacific University. She holds advanced degrees from Stanford University and New York University.

Coralroot Orchid: Beautiful & Unusual Parasitic Plant

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photo by Guy Maguire

photo by Guy Maguire

Last spring during a volunteer work party at the McLane Point Preserve on Eld inlet, we came across an unusual and beautiful little flower, a Spotted coralroot orchid, or Corallorhiza maculata. I immediately wanted to learn more about this fascinating plant.

The Spotted coralroot orchid is a myco-heterotroph, which means essentially “gaining its nutrients from the roots of mushrooms.” The Northwest is home to over a dozen species of these types of plants. These small orchids and heath family plants are unique because they have lost all their chlorophyll, do not perform photosynthesis, and rely entirely on the roots of certain mushrooms for all their nutrients.

Contrary to popular belief, not all plants are green. In fact, these myco-heterotrophes come in a great variety of colors. Once upon a time they had leaves and were green like most plants, but over time evolved to lose their pigment as they developed associations with specific fungi species. Some of the more common myco-heterotrophes in this area are the Candystick (Allotropa virgata), Indian pipe (Monotropa uniflora), Spotted coralroot (Corallorhiza maculate), and Striped coralroot (Corallorhiza striata).

While ecologists have known for many years that more than 90% of plants associate with fungi, only recently have they learned that specific plant species quite literally act as parasites on these fungi, stealing their nutrients. This may seem like a negative, but the reality is these plants play an important role in the forest’s ecology. These fungi get their energy, in the form of sugars, from the trees around them and in turn provide the trees with nitrogen and other nutrients. The “parasitic” orchids take only a minute fraction of those nutrients for themselves. In turn, they occupy a unique niche and provide more diversity in the forest. These orchids also fill an important link in the forest ecosystem by providing nectar for many species of pollinating insects.

My research on this fascinating organism led me to think about what else have we may have yet to  discover. Looking deeper into the lives of these plants has illustrated how truly interconnected the forest is.

So the next time you are wandering the woods and in the mountains, keep your eyes peeled! The Northwest is home to a diversity and abundance of these strange, beautiful, perplexing little flowers.

-GUY MAGUIRE 

Guy Maguire is Capitol Land Trust’s Restoration Projects Coordinator.

This article reprinted with permission from the Fall issue of the Capitol Land Trust newsletter.


Click here for more information regarding the Capitol Land Trust.
Click here for information regarding the Steamboat Conservation Partnership, a unique collaboration between the Griffin Neighborhood Association and the Capitol Land Trust.


Click here for more articles of this kind, regarding the nature around us.

Olympia World Affairs Council Presentation on Slovakia, November 3

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Slovakia, 2011
Slovakia’s Transition from Socialism to Democracy: Effects on Daily Life, Family and Culture Thursday, November 3, 12:00 – 1:00 pm, in the Community Room of the Olympian, 111 East Bethel Street
Much as Americans can remember where they were and what they were doing on September 9, 2001, Slovaks and other Eastern Europeans remember how their lives were about to change in the late summer and fall of 1989, when growing protests in East Germany led to the removal of prohibitions on travel to the West, the physical removal of the Berlin Wall and the ensuring collapse of the Soviet Empire in Eastern Europe. For Czechoslovaks, the decisive period was from November 17 to December 29, 1989: in just 33 days over 40 years of Communist Party rule can to an abrupt, peaceful end in what Slovaks called their “Gentle Revolution.”
One tends to think of these events in largely political terms of shifting lines and coloration on maps, the fate of empires and within the context of the East-West struggle of competing economic and political systems. But what was this cataclysmic change like for the people? What did it mean for individual lives and the effort to raise and support a family? What were the consequences for daily life, the effects on culture?
The Olympia World Affairs Council is proud to sponsor Dr. Marta Botikova, a visiting Fulbright Scholar at the Evergreen State College, to address this subject. Dr. Botikova is a full professor of Ethnology and Chairperson of the Department of Ethnology at Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak Republic, where she studied and has taught since 1978. She is a member of a half dozen professional associations, is widely published and has taught in short programs at universities throughout Western and Eastern Europe. One of her most recent publications treats Culture and Way of Life through the Eyes of Women in Slovakia.

Steamboat Island Cooperative Preschool Openings for Children Ages 2 through 4

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The Steamboat Island Cooperative Preschool has openings in both the Otter Class, for ages 2-3, and the Orca Class, ages 3-4. This is an excellent program at a preschool with a long history in the Griffin area.

SICP is a small non-profit preschool located near the corner of Steamboat Island Rd. and 41st, in a calm wooded setting. Families gain a strong community connection and benefit from the preschool’s parent education opportunities. Children gain social skills while learning through play.

For more information, call 866-1819 or see their web site at http://www.steamboatpreschool.org/
 

Sheriff’s Department Releases Community Alert

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Local residents recently noted an increase in the numbers of daylight burglaries being reported in our area. A burglary on Oyster Bay Road precipitated a brief email exchange, during which one neighbor wrote that someone had seen “a bearded man walking the road about that time of day of the burglary. Perhaps this perp is walking or bicycling into these breakins and that is why none of us see or hear anything suspicious.” Indeed, a quick review of the Thurston County Sheriff’s Department crime mapping system seems to indicate that was an increase, in September, in the number of reported burglaries in our area.

Now we have received the Community Alert below. Although the alert is specific to the Delphi area, and not ours, it is possible the same thieves are in our area. In any case, it does seem as though there’s been an increase in burglaries – particularly burglaries during the day time – and it makes sense for forlks who are at home weekdays to keep an eye on the homes of those neighbors who are not.

COMMUNITY ALERT 

Date: October 13, 2011 

Neighborhood/Area: Delphi area 

Nature of alert: Increase in burglary activity 

Details: Since mid September 2011, there were five burglaries between the 7400 block and 10,500 of Delphi Road SW. Additionally, crime mapping appeared to be showing an increasing trend in burglaries and thefts in the NW portion of the county. 

Two vehicles in the area of these burglaries were noted in one or more of the reports. They included a 1990’s greenish / bluish 2 door and a white Ford Ranger or F-150 type pick up– possibly with a rack and or canopy. Additionally, a resident on Delphi Road reported seeing a white 1996 GMC PU in the area during the dates / times of the burglaries. This truck also had tool type racks on it. 

While none of these vehicles can be tied directly to the increased activity in the area, residents should be aware of them if they see them in areas where they don’t belong. Residents are encouraged to contact the dispatch center at (360) 704-2740 to report suspicious persons / vehicles. Anyone with information related to the burglaries are asked to contact the TCSO Investigative Services Division at (360) 786-5530.

Burglaries Reported in September and
October (to-date)

“Fair Trade Around the World” a Presentation by Olympia World Affairs Council

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THURSDAY, October 20, Olympia Center, 7:30 PM, Room 101
TOPIC: Fair Trade Around the World
SPEAKERS: Matt Warning, “African Farmers: Primary Products and Sustainable Livelihoods”
Cherie Fontenot, “How sweet it is! Fair Trade and Theo Chocolate”
Fair Trade implies the practice of using only pure ingredients that are grown sustainably, partnering with growers to ensure they earn a living wage and having access to education for their families, honoring and respecting employees and suppliers, and using green energy power sources whenever possible. The following chart depicts the contrast between a conventional supply chain and a fair trade supply chain:

Matt Warning is a professor of economics at the University of Puget Sound. He has spent 25 years studying rural communities in Africa and Latin America. An authority on the economics of fair trade coffee, he has often been interviewed for articles in a variety of publications. He served as consulting producer for the PBS documentary “Buyer Be Fair” concerning fair trade coffee and certified wood. Professor Warning, who holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley,will speak about the conflicts in the African Great Lakes region, fair trade and its limitations, and quality as a necessary focus for sustainability.
Cherie Fontenot has worked for Theo Chocolate in Seattle for a number of years focusing on outreach work to bring the Theo message of Fair Trade to the public. Theo is the first and currently the only organic Fair Trade certified roaster of cacao in the United States, sourcing cacao from small farmers in the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama, Ghana, Madagascar, Venezuela and the Ivory Coast. Ms. Fontenot will relate how Theo’s small team is guided by a passion forchocolate, care for the environment, and dedication to enriching the lives of everyone involved, including cacao farmers and chocolate lovers.
As an added incentive to attend, chocolate samples will be provided.

Redistricting Could Place Griffin Area Among a Different Group of Voters

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“The U.S. Constitution requires that all states evaluate electoral district boundaries every ten years following the U.S. Census. In 1983, Washington voters established the Washington State Redistricting Commission to ensure district boundaries are redrawn through a fair and bipartisan process. The Redistricting Commission includes two Democrats and two Republicans as voting members and a non-voting, nonpartisan chair.

The commissioners’ draft redistricting proposals are now posted online. Also online are links you may use to comment on these proposals. Public input to the drafts will wrap up with a meeting in Olympia on October 11. The meeting will be webcast on TVW and broadcast on TV. Public comments will be taken during the meeting by phoning in or joining the interactive webcast.

After the meeting on October 11, the Redistricting Commissioners will meet as often as needed to hammer out a final plan for congressional and legislative districts. Their meetings will be open to the public and announced at least 24 hours in advance. The Commissioners have set a goal of November 1st to agree on a final plan, providing time to correct minor errors before the Constitutional deadline for submitting the plans to the Legislature on January 1, 2012.

Presently, Griffin area voters find themselves not quite in Thurston County, as ours is the small sliver of this county within the 35th Legislative District, and not in Olympia. At least, that is, when it comes to voting. The 35th LD encompasses all of Mason County and portions of Grays Harbor and Kitsap counties. As part of the 3rd Congressional District, we vote with a largely rural region south to Vancouver and west to the Pacific Ocean, at Long Beach. While many of us work in Olympia and travel frequently to Olympia to shop and to visit with friends, we are not in the same Legislative or Congressional district as Olympia.

Four redistricting plans are now subject to public review and comment. Where does the Griffin area fall, in each of these?

Click here to view each of the four redistricting plans. Click here to install Google Earth on your PC or Mac, to take advantage of the links to Google Earth layers.

Legislative District Proposals Split Down the Middle

Proposals from Slade Gorton and Tom Huff would move the Steamboat Island peninsula into the same Legislative district (District 22) in which Olympia and portions of north Thurston County are located.

However, Slade Gorton’s proposal would put the portion of the Griffin area north of US 101 in Olympia’s legislative district, but parcels to the south of US 101 in Mason County’s legislative district (District 35). Huff’s proposal, too, would put Summit Lake in one LD and the rest of the Griffin area in another LD.

The proposals of Tim Ceis and Dean Foster would keep the Griffin area in the same legislative district as Mason County (District 35).

Congressional District Proposals Vary Widely as to Boundaries

All four proposals would place the Griffin area in the same congressional district as the city of Olympia. However, the proposals vary widely as to the boundaries and size of that district.

Gorton’s proposal is for a modestly-sized congressional district (District 9) covering all of Thurston County and then extending north into Pierce County, just east of Tacoma and west of Puyallup.

Ceis would create a congressional district (District 10) extending from Shelton across north Thurston County and then into Pierce County, but extending not as far north into Pierce County as Gorton’s proposal.

Foster’s proposal would create a single vast congressional district (District 10) covering the entire Olympic Peninsula and south to the Oregon border, including Pacific County (but not Wahkiakum). This district would extend across north Thurston County and to a point north of South Hill. It is notable, whowever, that Foster’s proposal places Shelton – actually, the eastern half of Mason County – in a different district than District 10.

Huff’s proposal is for a large congressional district (District 6) that covers the entire Olympic Peninsula, to the southern boundary of Grays Harbor County. Then east to Interstate 5, including Olympia but ending at the Nisqually River. This district would include Bainbridge Island.

Miles to Go Before Completion

Although the public comment period ends soon – October 11 – there is much work left to complete redistricting. A decade ago, there were big differences between the districts proposed and those which were eventually set.

On October 20, Thurston County will host a public meeting on the redistricting proposals. Click here for information about that event, which takes place in the Tenino High School.

Click here to review the proposals and to make comments to each of the four voting members on the Redistricting Commission.